Interview: Sam Lowe 2015

With less than 2 days to the much awaited CiCLE Classic 2015, we spoke to 20yr old Sam Lowe, team mate to Ian Wilkinson, Raleigh-GAC and asked him to tell us a little about his cycling history leading to now. He said:

“I first started cycling when I was seven after going to watch the National Cyclo-cross championships. My Dad also used to race when he was younger so that influenced me as well. When I first started out I spent a lot of time riding on the local cycle and canal paths in Derbyshire. I like racing just because I’ve always been competitive.”

When we asked what’s been his favourite race to date, he said:

“My favourite race so far would have to be Junior Paris-Roubaix. It’s such an iconic race and to be able to do it on the same roads as the pro race with pretty much the same crowds, certainly made it one of the best experiences I’ve had riding a bike.”

After what he termed ‘ a disappointing year’ in 2014, he is keen to look ahead to new goals in 2015.

“I just want to have a good season all round this year after a tough year in France last year, so I want to get back on track and hopefully pick up some wins along the way, so maybe the CiCLE Classic will be the ideal opportunity.

“I like varied terrain to be honest. I’m not a fan of anything too hilly and mountainous. I’d say I’m a punchy rider, so like a few short climbs just to split the race up a little.”

“I like the fact the CiCLE Classic is different to all the other British races on the calendar and it’s always a tough race with good crowds. I’ve done the CiCLE Classic once before so I know what to expect and hopefully that’ll help. It’s always good to have good crowd support at races and it definitely makes it more memorable for the riders.

And when we asked him what it’s like having twice winner Ian Wilkinson on the squad, he said:

“Obviously it’s great for the team to have someone like Ian Wilkinson with a lot of success and experience in the race, so we can get plenty of advice and hopefully that’ll help the team riding this year.